The Michigan Dioxin Study: Help for Defendants in Toxic Tort Litigation

In August 2006, the University of Michigan's School of Public Health released the initial report in its ongoing study of dioxin exposure in central Michigan. <i>Measuring People's Exposure to Dioxin Contamination Along the Tittabawassee River and Surrounding Areas</i> (August, 2006) ('Report') (<i>www.umdioxin.org</i>). The University study was prompted by concerns among the population of Midland and Saginaw Counties that dioxin-like compounds from Dow Chemical Company facilities in Midland had contaminated parts of the city of Midland and sediments in the Tittabawassee River (Report, p. 5). The study was not designed to evaluate health effects, but rather to determine whether there was a relationship between levels of dioxin in residential soils and household dust and levels of dioxin in people's blood. <i>Id.</i> It also evaluated other factors that could influence blood dioxin levels such as age, diet, hobbies, and employment. <i>Id.</i>

22 minute read December 28, 2006 at 01:30 PM

By

Anthony G. Hopp